Erica Fretwell | UK-SA Chair in Culture & Technics Workshop: 10-12 November 2025

Value of the Information & Strength of the Argument

The talk offers a valuable and original perspective on the history of science and its intersection with race and aesthetics. Fretwell’s argument is well-structured, moving from the historical context of psychophysics to its specific applications and implications. She provides concrete examples, such as the aesthesiometer and spirit photography, to illustrate her points. The argumentation is solid, drawing on a range of scholars and primary sources. However, as a workshop presentation, it is more exploratory than definitive, and some claims could benefit from further elaboration.

Scientific Rigor, Source Quality, Title Accuracy

The talk demonstrates scholarly rigor, with references to key figures like Fechner, Galton, Du Bois, and contemporary theorists. Fretwell acknowledges her intellectual debts and situates her work within existing scholarship. The title accurately reflects the content, as it is a workshop presentation within the UK-SA Chair series. The talk is well-organized and the sources are appropriate for the topic.

The title accurately describes the content: a workshop presentation by Erica Fretwell, part of the UK-SA Chair in Culture & Technics.

7/10

The talk is a scholarly presentation by an academic expert, drawing on historical sources and theoretical frameworks. It is well-structured and referenced, but as a workshop presentation, it lacks formal peer review and detailed citations.

Markers derived by PSI from the transcript: the creator did not define chapters.

• 02:00Introduction: Fretwell thanks organizers and introduces her current project on the history of general anesthetics and mindlessness.
• 05:00Fretwell introduces psychophysics as the 'lost science of the senses' and its relevance to her research.
• 10:00Discussion of W.E.B. Du Bois and double consciousness, and how psychophysics made it thinkable.
• 15:00Explanation of psychophysics: measuring the soul's relation to the material world, with key figures Fechner, Weber, and Helmholtz.
• 20:00Introduction of perceptual sensitivity as a racializing technology, with the aesthesiometer and Galton's eugenicist tests.
• 25:00Case study of spirit photography and 'not seeing' as a sensory experiment, with examples from the Civil War era.
• 30:00Discussion of how spirit photography reinforced racial hierarchies, with the example of Master Herod's photograph.
• 35:00Introduction of 'aesthesia' as an alternative aesthetics, drawing on Fechner's 'aesthetics from below' and Helmholtz's 'aesthetic induction'.
• 40:00Discussion of the phantom limb phenomenon and its relation to psychophysics and prosthesis.

• Sensory Experiments: Psychophysics, Race, and the Aesthetics of Feeling — Fretwell's first book, mentioned as the basis for her research.
• The Souls of Black Folk — W.E.B. Du Bois's work, referenced for the concept of double consciousness.
• Elemente der Psychophysik — Gustav Fechner's foundational work in psychophysics, mentioned as defining the science.
• Inquiries into Human Faculty and Its Development — Francis Galton's book, referenced for his eugenicist use of sensitivity tests.
• The Audible Past — Jonathan Sterne's book, mentioned as a major work in media studies.
• Techniques of the Observer — Jonathan Crary's book, mentioned as canonical in art history.

• The Biopolitics of Feeling: Race, Sex, and Science in the Nineteenth Century — Kyla Schuller's work, cited as an influence on Fretwell's thinking about affect and race.
• Fugitive Science: Empiricism and Freedom in Early African American Culture — Britt Rusert's book, mentioned as demonstrating minoritarian scientific engagements.